I have been struggling lately with the realization that, as much as I try not to, I have glamorized being busy. It is just so gosh darn rewarding to answer how are you with that deep sigh that says oh there is just so much going on!
I don't know when I started relating how busy I am to how successful I am, but somewhere in there it happened. Each time I book a wedding, I am completely flooded with joy. But shortly after I'll find myself thinking its still not enough and setting a higher goal to fill up my calendar more.
And I can't help but notice that it is not just me. We are all running around frantically, smiling, and telling each other how busy we are. But something is missing in that conversation.
This year I will have the opportunity to be an intimate part of 15 couple's most beautiful celebration. Moments so precious and fleeting and beautiful, and they have asked me to be witness and tell that story. But how am I going to be open to hearing their story if I don't take the time to slow down and listen?
I recently READ, that in Muslim cultures, to ask how are you doing, you ask: in Arabic, Kayf haal-ik? or in Persian, Haal-e shomaa chetoreh? How is your haal?
How is your heart?
Instead of just wanting the common answers (oh I am fine, oh I have been busy) it is an invite. To share in the lost art of slow conversation. One without an agenda, and without a need to fill every silence. A space for honest and soulful conversation. One where you drop the need to constantly be productive, constantly pushing forward, and instead embrace the inefficiencies of being human.
To say to someone, I am not too busy for you.
“I am not asking how many items are on your to-do list, nor asking how many items are in your inbox. I want to know how your heart is doing, at this very moment. Tell me. Tell me your heart is joyous, tell me your heart is aching, tell me your heart is sad, tell me your heart craves a human touch. Examine your own heart, explore your soul, and then tell me something about your heart and your soul.”
